GAME DETAILS
ASC Championship Tournament Finals
University of the Ozarks 74, Louisiana College 72
Records: University of the Ozarks (10-3), Louisiana College (11-5)
Monday, March 15, 2021
Clarksville, Ark. | Mabee Gymnasium
THE BASICS
The Eagles capped a remarkable and historic season by winning the 2020-21 American Southwest Conference Championship with a 74-72 victory over Louisiana College Monday night in the finals of the ASC Tournament. It is the first ASC Championship for the program and the first conference championship since the 1993-94 season. Under head coach Travis Carruthers, the Eagles showed grit and determination throughout the night and held off a talented Wildcat team. Louisiana College never took the lead in the second half, but tied it 50-50 at the 8:40 mark. Star guard Bryson Johnson wouldn't let the Eagles lose as he scored 23 points in the second half. The Eagles led 31-26 at halftime. Zach Byrd hit a trio of three-pointers in the first half to score 13 points. The Eagles led by six points with less than 15 seconds remaining, but the Wildcats made things interesting in the end to make it closer than it should have been. Johnson scored 25 points and dished out seven assists. Byrd hit five three-pointers and had 19 points. Johnson was named Tournament MVP. Byrd and Zach Bobo also made the All-Tournament Team.
"First, all glory to God, without Him we wouldn't be here," said Johnson. "It is surreal. To be able to play my last home game in this jersey and get a championship and an MVP, it hasn't set in yet."
"It was an emotional rush after the game," said Bobo. "It hasn't processed fully for me and I don't think it will for a while. The chemistry on this team is unbelievable. We are brothers for life, it goes deeper than basketball. We just wanted to win."
"It feels surreal," said Byrd. "It is a perfect cinderella story. I try to do things that may not show up on the stat sheet, but it helps all around."
"We talk every day about who we are more than what kind of basketball players we are," said Carruthers. "And that type of mindset came to fruition today. We are a tough group and a group that is together. They made the plays when they had to this season. We hung our hat on the defensive end and rebounding. They had a will to win tonight. And when things got tight, we got better. I'm happy for the guys. It's really special to see the joy in their faces. It's been a long season and the guys just gave me everything they had every day."
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ASC Championship Web Site: https://ascsports.org/news/2021/1/6/2021-mens-basketball-championship-central.aspx
LEADERS
Scoring – Bryson Johnson (25)
Rebounding – Zach Byrd (8)
Assists – Bryson Johnson (7)
KEY STATISTICS
Energized by a raucous crowd, the Eagles never let go of the lead in the second half despite the Wildcats tying the score.
NOTABLES
The Eagles won its first ASC championship and its first ASC East Division title. Under head coach Travis Carruthers, the Eagles also won its first ASC playoff game. The NCAA III Men's Basketball Championships will not be played this season due to COVID-19.
OZARKS STARTERS
Bryson Johnson, Seth Duke, Zach Bobo, Zach Byrd, Tim Turpin
ASC ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
MVP - Bryson Johnson, Ozarks
Zach Bobo, Ozarks
Zach Byrd, Ozarks
Kae'ron Baker - Louisiana College
KJ Bilbo - Louisiana College
Aidan Walsh, Hardin-Simmons
Carson Hammond, Mary Hardin-Baylor
